Cover Image: A Patchwork of Clues

A Patchwork of Clues

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Member Reviews

Series: Queen Bees Quilt Shop - Book 1
Author: Sally Goldenbaum http://www.sallygoldenbaum.com/
Genre: Cozy Mystery/Hobby/Writer
Publisher: Lyrical Press https://www.kensingtonbooks.com/book.aspx/37562
Page Count: 155

New from Lyrical Press https://www.kensingtonbooks.com Sally Goldenbaum’s first book in her “Queen Bees Quilt Shop Mystery ” series, A Patchwork of Clues is an easy to read, entertaining book with great characters and a wonderful setting.

Portia (Po) is a woman on a mission, she is in the middle of writing a new book about famous strong women in history and their connection with Quilting. She also tries to get out and keep in shape. As an older woman, it isn’t easy to stay fit, busy and happy all at the same time, but she is making it work.

Po’s Quilting group meets every week to create works of art, catch up with each other and spend time with like-minded people. The fact that their age range is very wide, they are close and comfortable with each other and accept each of them for who they are, and who they want to be. All the characters in this book are interesting, the kind of people most of us would like to have as friends. Warm, caring, giving and filled with a sense of purpose, each character adds a facet to the story that makes it worth reading.

The murder on first impression appears unpretentious, however, as the story progresses readers begin to realize that it is far from simple and at its heart is sinister and complicated. The reveal of the killer and the motive are a head-shaking moment that is very believable, even ordinary with just enough unhappiness to make us realize that life can be messy and sad.

Although A Patchwork of Clues is on the slow side, it isn’t uncommon for a first book in a new series, but it certainly could have used more action and less description. The first book sets up the characters, locations, and overall what readers can expect from the sleuth, motives, and murders in future books. Overall, this is a pleasant first book in a new series and I expect it will get better with each new addition.

ARC Provided by Kensington via Netgalley

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When a local business owner is found dead at their beloved quilting shop, this eclectic group of women, led by upbeat widow Po, become determined to find out whodunit. This first book in a captivating new mystery series will keep you guessing until the very end & leave you waiting impatiently for book 2!

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A Patchwork of Clues is the debut of the Queen Bees Quilt Shop series set in the small town of Crestwood, Kansas and features Portia (Po) Paltrow and her group of quilting ladies. On an early morning jog down Elderberry Road Po discovers the body of antiques owner Owen Hill wedged in the doorway of Selma Parker's quilting shop and the police are quick to claim his murder was an act of burglary gone wrong. But when Owen's lawyer Max Elliott is run down and left for dead Po begins to suspect something dangerous is happening in her charming town.

The book starts off slow with the author giving a detailed background of each of the ladies in the quilting group, but eventually weaves the diversity of each woman into the solid foundation of friendships. A steady plot offers a variety of suspects including members of the Elderberry Road beautification committee, the alcoholic security guard who patrols the shops and several disenchanted spouses.

An interesting cast of characters and a touch of romance offers up the potential for more adventures with Po and her friends.

I received an advanced copy of A Patchwork of Clues from NetGalley via Lyrical Underground. While not required to write a review I am happy to offer my honest opinion.

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In the first chapter, an anxious black cat leads Portia Paltrow (Po) to the dead body of Owen Hill, his foot lodged in the back door of Selma Parker’s quilt shop.

The local police quickly arrest a suspect who was found with Owen’s watch and claims he found it. When the suspect’s story checks out, he is released. And then Owen’s lawyer, Max Elliott is the target of a hit and run, ending up in a coma.
With two community leaders attacked, Po and her quilting friends – Kate, Leah, Phoebe, Eleanor, Maggie, Susan and Selma – start nosing round, asking questions.

Sally Goldenbaum writes a good mystery populated with interesting characters. While the pace in this adventure is a little slow perhaps the action in the next book will be a bit more stimulating.

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A Patchwork of Clues by Sally Goldenbaum is the first installment in Queen Bees Quilt Shop.

A very diverse group of women gathered around their love of quilting get together to make quilts and to enjoy each other's company.
When a murder of prominent local figure rocks their little town they are shocked.
Soon they realize that local police might not be on the right track and after a while they decide to take matters into their own hands and solve this mystery.

I really appreciated how the author took time to introduce each of the characters, even so I was struggling at the beginning trying to remember them all.
I liked that the story had a steady pace, I think it is very important especially at the start of new series.
What I found odd was the fact that the ladies started sleuthing almost by the end of the book. Even so, it was interesting and engrossing.
Looking forward book number two to see how things will progress.

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I like this new series. I like the midwestern small town setting and how it's centered around quilting. At first there a jumble of characters to keep straight, but eventually they become more distinct. I do hope the author delves deeper into each of the main characters' stories because with this first book she merely skims the surface. The mystery wasn't that difficult to unravel, but the story kept moving along.

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I'm a big fan of Goldenbaum's Seaside Knitters series, so was very anxious to try this new series focused on quilting. There are many similarities: a group of women with a common interest who also solve crimes, unique perspectives and personalities for each woman, and a small town setting. This first novel in this new series has all the makings of a good mystery, but I didn't find the characters quite as endearing. However, I'm trying to think back to the other series and wondering if it took awhile for their stories to grow on me, as well. I think the seaside setting of the knitters series was also more attractive to me than a small college town in Kansas. Perhaps a different setting might have made this book more appealing. That said, I'm looking forward to the next book in the series to learn more about these women.

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This review will be posted on my blog, Foxes and Fairy Tales on

A Patchwork of Clues is the first book in Sally Goldenbaum's Queen Bees Quilt Shop series. I'm a big fan of a craft-themed cozy so I'm always excited to read a new-to-me author.

The story follows a quilting group and one of the things I enjoyed early on was that the author gives a little snippet of each character beginning their day. There's a pretty big group right from the off -- about 7 or 8 -- so it's nice to get a bit of time to clarify each character. This meant the story took a little bit longer to get up and running after the discovery of the body, but I think it was worth it in the long run.

Once the story starts, some get a lot more attention than the other (some could probably be cut or combined) but I'm hoping further books with play around with which women to focus on. In this book, my favourites (and the two we spent the most time with) were Po (a widowed writer and mother-figure to most of the group) and Kate (recently returned home from the big city). It's a nice way to work in several of the traditional 'types' of cozy protagonists all in one.

I did feel like this one was a little light on the mystery aspect. Po's curious throughout, but the gang don't start sleuthing til pretty late on, and there's more nosiness than the actual investigation. I think this book is far more about the town and the characters lives. Since I found the characters interesting, this worked for me, but I'd hope future novels became more involved.

The mystery itself was pretty good, there were plenty of suspects and shady motives to keep you guessing.

I really enjoyed this book, but perhaps because I didn't feel like we really got invested in any one character, I'm not sure I'd continue with it: I'd probably decide based on how intriguing the plot sounds.

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Fans of this sub genre of cozies will happy with this book.
I found there were too many characters to keep my interest.

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When I think of a cozy mystery, this book checks off all of the boxes! Beautifully written characters, a magnificent setting, and a murder that the characters cannot help by get involved in. A wonderful read and series I hope goes on and on.

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Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book!

Firstly, three stars is a rather low rating for me, but it wasn't because this book was bad exactly. It was just so slow to get into the mystery, and spent far too long on each character and their sweaters than I had time for. I wanted some sleuthing to get done, but it was a long while into the book before anything on that count was even attempted. I get that it was setting us up to know the characters, but the suspense was just too much. Normally this is what I love about cozies, but you can have too much of a good thing I guess.

Maybe now the characters are set up the next book will be better. I'd still give it a chance but with misgivings. Three stars for this one!

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A Patchwork of Clues by Sally Goldenbaum is the beginning of what I hope is a long running new cozy series. Ms. Goldenbaum is a "new to me" author and I thoroughly enjoyed this first book.

The well-crafted story introduces the members of the quilting bee held in the back room of the Queen Bee Quilt Shop. The characters are a variety of ages and backgrounds but their love of quilting and their friendships are strong. I liked each woman and was glad that Ms. Goldenbaum took her time to introduce each one with some background so that I felt like I knew them all by the end of the book. Though the murder was discovered in the first chapter the sleuthing didn't actually begin until later in the book; but I was intrigued enough to know about each character that I was okay with this slow start. There were very few suspects, lots of suspicions and gossip and enough twists to keep me guessing.

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multigenerational cozy mystery

I enjoyed Sally Goldenbaum’s previous series so I was excited to find A Patchwork of Clues the first book in A Queen Bees Quilt Shop Mystery series on Netgalley.
I was happy to see the wide range of ages of the women quilting/sleuthing unfortunately it seemed like too much of the book was taken up with introducing them to the reader rather than their solving the mystery. I found myself skimming the book at times to get to the meat of the mystery. However I did enjoy the relationship the woman share which is at the foundation of the series.
I received an advance reader copy via Netgalley.

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A slow start to this series, as each member of the quilting group is introduced and details about them all made my head spin. Wish there would have been more focus on just one, and the others could have a focus in other books. As a quilter myself I was eager to read this one, but all the intro details bogged me down. Would recommend, but be ready to skim the beginning.

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I’ve read a few of this authors works and am generally happy with what I read. This book had highs and lows, and at times it tended to drag a bit.
It did perk up about halfway through and I did find the end a surprise. Overall, this is a good book.

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What a fun start to a series! I can't wait to read more of these as they come out.
This is the second cozy mystery in a row I've read that deals with a group of people working to solve a mystery, instead of a single person and I am loving the change. It's so enjoyable to read about a group of women working together to solve problems.
The story is mostly told from the perspective of Po, a sixty something year old women and a character whom I would love to have as a grandmother. Another thing I'm not used to in my stories, and having read this one, I want more older female leads! Grandmas are BA too!
It has the comforting feel that I pick these books up for, exciting murders that liven things up, and everything I want in my stories.
As a rabid quilter myself, I enjoyed hearing about the projects they worked on, and it even gave me a few ideas in my own projects.

No warning apply.

Thanks to Netgalley for a digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

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I have been wanting to give this author a try so when I saw she had a new cozy mystery series debuting in June I thought I would give it a try. I like the author's writing style and the characters in this new series. This is a group of diverse women brought together by their love of quilting in a local quilt group. There is really a character for everyone in this book. They are all likable. The author did a good job of introducing the characters and providing their backstory and laying the ground work for the series. However, for me, she did too much of this. I was over 60% of the way through the book before the group of women decided they were going to try to solve the mystery. One of the characters discovers the body of the victim in the first chapter. I like a good character driven cozy mystery, but for me I thought this book was too light and too late with the mystery.

I'm not sure if I will continue with the series.

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With thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
Description:
"On her morning jog, Portia Paltrow comes upon the dead body of antiques store owner and college professor Owen Hill, sprawled across the back doorstep of Selma Parker's fabric and quilt shop on Elderberry Road. The site of their Saturday morning quilting bee just became a crime scene. Violent crime is rare in the charming village of Crestwood, Kansas, and rumors are soon circulating of a burglary gone wrong. But who would rob a quilt shop? No, Owen Hill has been murdered."
This is a book for 'cozy mystery' fans. It was a good mystery with well defined characters, most of whom share a love of quilting. It will keep you engaged from start to finish (but don't expect white knuckle, edge of the seat stuff), has plenty of motives from various players and a satisfying and logical conclusion. I think it is one of the better books in this genre and I look forward to future outings with Po et al.

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The first book of a new series, Queen Bee Quilt Shop was slow going as each member of the quilt group was introduced with a personal background.
Portia Paltrow is jogging through an area and when she reaches Elderberry road and its shops she found Owen Hill murdered body in the entrance of Selma Parker's shop, the site of the quilting group. The story takes several turns as the quilting group learns about the different opinions of the shop owners. Owen Hill was in charge of the Elderberry Shops Organization. The ending is a surprise. I highly recommend this book.

Disclosure: Thanks to Lyrical Underground for a copy through NetGalley. The opinions expressed are my own.

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A Patchwork of Clues tells the story of a group of quilters who meet to quilt and share their lives. While they are all friends sometimes a friend has a secret.
When a local businessman is killed everyone is puzzled. Who would kill such a nice man? But then motives start slowly appearing. The motive for the murder is not what you would expect - and there were plenty of motives.
As the quilters work through the patchwork of clues, carefully piecing it together much as they would piece a quilt, they suddenly start to understand - but will the killer get to them first?

This book kept my attention nicely. The characters were well written. This is a great read.

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